The Last Supper
Notes
Transcript
When the hour had come, Jesus reclined at the table with His apostles.
And He said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before My suffering.
For I tell you that I will not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”
After taking the cup, He gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves.
For I tell you that I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.”
And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.
Look! The hand of My betrayer is with Mine on the table.
Indeed, the Son of Man will go as it has been determined, but woe to that man who betrays Him.”
Then they began to question among themselves which of them was going to do this.
In 1866 a man named Alfred had the rare opportunity to read his own obituary.
Apparently the newspaper in Alfred’s hometown mistakenly believed that he had died and prematurely published his obituary.
Alfred was a philanthropist (a generous donor to charities) and had made a fortune by inventing dynamite.
In his obituary his invention was blamed for the death and mutilation of thousands of people.
He was shocked and dismayed by the harsh manner in which he was portrayed.
Alfred was determined to improve his public image and leave a better legacy.
He wanted to be remembered as a man of science and of peace.
When Alfred died in 1896, his will provided the major portion of his $9 million estate be set up as a fund to establish yearly prizes for merit in Physics, Chemistry, Medicine and Physiology, Literature, and World Peace.
Alfred’s last name if you haven’t yet guessed was Noble, Alfred Noble.
The prize that bears his name is an international award given annually since 1901.
How would you like to be remembered?
None of us of course will be around to find out!
Jesus said; “Remember me” (vs 19b) or do this in rememberance of me.
And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
Jesus knew exactly how he wanted to be remembered.
We just passed the Christmas holiday, and of all the Christian holidays in the year, this is the one that the world focuses on.
Some focus on his miracles and how amazing & breathtaking they were!
I won’t take the time to name them all, but I know as I mentioned this several came to mind.
Others focus on his teaching – the wisdom & the cross-cultural application of them.
But look was Jesus himself focussed in on.
He focused on one particular aspect – his death!
What appeared to be the world’s greatest tragedy was, in fact, the world’s greatest triumph!
To help his disciples focus and also remember him, he gave to them a visual aid:
Bread & wine.
A solid and a liquid.
His body and his blood.
I want to share a story with you to help illustrate visual aides.
Lord N Horatio Nelson died during the Battle of Trafalgar, in 1805.
At his death, Britain lost a complex leader who balanced a personal longing for honour and glory; with a compassion and respect for his men.
He was buried in St. Paul’s Cathedral and a party of his sailors bore his coffin to the tomb.
One person who saw the scene wrote:
“With reverence and with efficiency; they lowered the body of the world’s greatest admiral into its tomb.
Then, as though answering to a sharp order from the quarter deck, they all seized the Union Jack with which the coffin had been covered and tore it to fragments.
Each took his souvenir of the illustrious dead.”
For the rest of their lives those coffin bearers looked at that little bit of coloured cloth and would remind them of the admiral they had both served and loved!
Similarly In the houses of everyone of us here there are drawers or boxes full of things that others would call junk.
Yet the reason they have been kept is because when we touch, handle, and look at them, they bring back Memories.
Memories to our hearts and minds.
Memories of this or that person, or this or that occasion.
To help his disciples focus and remember Jesus gave to his followers a visual aid.
Of the four gospel writers who record this event, only Luke mentions that the Lord’s Supper was to become a memorial feast.
Look at the words in verse 19b,
And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
"Do this in remembrance of me"
Those words are not found in the other three gospel accounts of that night in the upper room.
You won’t find them in Matthew, Mark or John.
In fact the only other place where we find these words are in 1 Corinthians chapter 11
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread,
and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
These words have become tradition when partaking in communion.
Notice Jesus did not tell us how often we should partake in communion, he just tells us to do it in remembrance of him.
In churches across the world those words are engraved on tables.
These words are quoted in many, many prayers.
These words of remembrance were actually recorded by two people who were not even the upper room.
Now we believe they were aided in their writings by the Holy Spirit, but they were not present at the Last Supper.
If it wasn’t clear from the scripture, Luke and Paul are the only two writers of the Bible to include this ordinance from the Lord.
The Greeks had a phrase which they used to describe time
“Time”, they said, “wipes all things out”.
Time wipes out all things
It is as if the minds of people were a slate-chalk board and time a sponge which wiped it clean.
Jesus has been warning the disciples of his impending doom.
He has been teaching and training them to hold fast to the faith.
He has been showing them they should not grow wearing in doing good but should continue to press on toward the mark of the high calling.
He has been leading by example every day of his life.
In the next few hours and days; the disciples would ride a roller coaster of emotional experiences.
Think of the turmoil, the disorder, the confusion that would shake these followers to their very cores.
These events could easily wipe clean the memories of the disciples, much like a wet sponge wiped along a slate-chalk board.
To combat human forgetfulness God gave his followers a physical visual aid – bread & wine.
Bread & Wine
Jesus said of the bread, “This is my body” (vs 19a).
And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
**IMAGE OF THE PASSOVER BREAD**
Don’t skip past that phrase, it is so very, very important.
Jesus is giving the bread a brand new meaning and He is introducing a brand new concept:
Up to now whenever these 11 disciples had celebrated Passover the bread had a specific meaning.
It had to be Unleavened bread as commanded by God in the Old Testament (Exodus chapter 13)
Unleavened bread is made without adding leavening agents to it, like yeast or baking soda.
This prevents the bread from rising, therefore, it keeps the bread flat and not as soft.
Why would they need to bake unleavened bread?
I’m so glad you asked.
Because yeast is the substance that causes fermentation.
It soon affects and dominates the bread it is placed in.
Just about every time you read about leaven in the Bible it symbolizes error, evil or sin.
Here we are discussing Passover.
And in the Passover ceremony unleavened bread had always stood for ‘leaving Egypt’ (leaving slavery).
‘Leaven’ had spoken to them of a past life, a life of oppression.
Unleavened bread was a way of saying: “We are starting anew. Our old life is past and it will not influence us anymore!”
Much like when we are baptized.
But from this is such a pivotal moment on, bread was to have a brand new meaning.
It was to symbolise Christ’s physical body.
A body that was of course without leaven, without sin!
Luke goes on to say in verse 19:
And He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
“This is my body given for you”.
Circle the word that Jesus used there: given.
Jesus will offer up his life as a sacrifice.
He was not martyred and his life was certainly not taken from him!
Luke says he gives up his spirit.
He lays his life down.
Then Jesus called out in a loud voice, “Father, into Your hands I commit My Spirit.” And when He had said this, He breathed His last.
Look what Jesus say: “Father, into your hands I commit my Spirit”
In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.
Jesus moves past the body and now he is speaking about his blood.
Look at what he says: This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
Many scholars believe that Jesus is quoting from the Old Testament:
From the book of Exodus chapter 24 verse 8:
So Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
What is a covenant?
Once again you guys are asking really good questions.
The Jewish people were in a covenant relationship with God.
In modern times we define a host of relations by contracts.
These are usually for goods or services and/or for hard cash.
The contract, formal or informal, helps to specify failure in these relationships.
The Lord did not establish a contract with Israel or with the church.
He created a covenant.
There is a big difference.
Contacts are broken when one of the parties fails to keep his promise.
Just say, a patient fails to keep an appointment with a dentist.
The dentist is not obligated to call the house and inquire, “Where were you? Why didn’t you show up for your appointment?”
The dentist simply goes on to the next patient and has his appointment secretary take note of the patient who may receive a bill for failure to turn up.
The dentist can do this because the patient broke an informal contract.
The Bible indicates that a covenant is more like the ties of a parent to her child than it is a dentist’s appointment.
If a child fails to show up for dinner the parent’s obligation, unlike the dentist’s, isn’t cancelled.
The parent finds out where the child is and makes sure they are cared for.
One member’s failure does not destroy the relationship.
A covenant puts no conditions on faithfulness.
It is the unconditional commitment to love and serve.
When God made covenants with Noah (Genesis 8:20), Abraham (Genesis 15:10), and Moses (Exodus 24:8) blood was shed!
God required shedding of blood in making covenants with men.
The price of reconciliation was always costly, in that blood was shed.
The writer of the book of Hebrews (chapter 9 verse 22) tells us:
According to the law, in fact, nearly everything must be purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
This graphic and painful demonstration of the loss of animal life all pointed forward to the death of Christ.
By His death he would be the final sacrifice for reconciliation.
In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.
Verse 20 Jesus tells us that his blood would be ‘Poured out’ or ‘gush out’ or ‘spill out’.
**Picture of the Crucifixtion**
We know that literally happened through the wounds in his hands, his feet, his side and lacerated back, as well as the crown of thorns upon his head.
Verse 20: tells us his blood was shed “For you”.
Jesus is talking to his committed followers and not speaking generally to the crowds when he says this.
Matthew adds in his account (chapter 26 verse 28):
This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Mark adds in his gospel: Mark 14:24
He said to them, “This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.
It literally means “For the benefit of many”.
The substitutional death of Christ brought forgiveness.
That is why he came!
Jesus said:
For I tell you that I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.”
So how long are we to celebrate the Lord’s Supper?
“Until the kingdom of God comes."
Mark in his gospel puts it this way;
Truly I tell you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God.”
Once again Matthew in his gospel gives us a fuller statement:
I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in My Father’s kingdom.”
Although Jesus was talking about his death, He made his disciples this promise:
He would come back one day and drink the cup with them in the kingdom.
Church he is coming back one day, I pray that you are ready.
In just a moment we are going to partake in communion.
The term communion, therefore, represents not only our communion with the Lord but also our communion with one another.
I want all who will to come join me around the front here.
I want you to line up from side to side and hold the hand of the person next to you.
Church this fellowship does not work without unity.
We have to be united as the body of Christ and as a body of believers.
As I pray for you today, I want you to pray for the people standing with you.
After we pray I will serve you guys communion, but I want you wait until everyone is served before we partake.
PRAY
